UNESCO Chair Global Health and Education Health Education, Prevention, Health Promotion, Children and Young People
 
Webinar

Digital tools for school-based health and well-being education

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UNESCO IITE and UNESCO Chair Global Health & Education webinar series

Thursday 28 March 2024 13.00 – 14.30 CET

Register here to receive the Zoom link.

Speakers

Tao Zhan, is the Director of the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education.

Didier Jourdan, is full Professor at the Univerity of Clermont Auvergne and the Co-Chair Holder of the UNESCO Chair “Global Health and Education” and Head of the WHO Collaborating Centre for “Research in Education and Health” which are focused on knowledge production and sharing from an intersectoral perspective. He is also a Governing Board member of UNESCO IITE. He is the former Director of the Prevention and Health Promotion Division of the French National Public Health Agency. He has formally held positions as Director of the Graduate School of Teaching and Education (ESPE), Head of the Centre for lifelong learning and Vice-President of Blaise Pascal University. In addition, he held the position as President of the “Prevention, Education and Health Promotion” Commission of the French High Council for Public Health and President of the Network “Universities for training in health education”.

Patricia Machawira, serves as the UNESCO Regional Advisor on Education for Health and Wellbeing in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA). With extensive expertise in policy and programme development, she champions comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) initiatives. Patricia’s leadership played a pivotal role in securing political commitment for scaling up SRH education and services for youth in ESA. She holds a Doctorate in Education Policy from the University of Pretoria and an MSc in Education and Training Systems Design from the University of Twente.

Donald Tererai, is a Digital comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) Specialist at UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA), leveraging his background in Learning Experience Design. With a focus on enhancing health and gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa, Donald pioneers digital interventions to scale up comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) in the ESA region. He holds Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Information Science from NUST, Zimbabwe, along with a PGDip in Educational Technology from the University of Cape Town.

Ekaterina Samolygo, is Project Coordinator at UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE). She brings over 4 years of experience in international development and humanitarian aid. Her expertise encompasses overseeing diverse projects focusing on comprehensive health and education initiatives, including youth-led programs addressing critical issues such as bullying, media literacy, human rights, and sexuality education. Ekaterina’s work extends to managing social media initiatives for parents and overseeing AI-based chatbots that contribute to the delivery of health and well-being education.

Mr. Tigran Yepoyan is UNESCO regional HIV and health education advisor for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. He oversees the development and promotion of ICT-powered tools for health and well-being education for young people and supports teacher capacity building for violence prevention and health education. Has 25+ years of working experience in the field of HIV, education, health, social support, youth and community development in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Is based in Moscow at UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education where head the Unit of ICT in Health Education.  

Moderator

Mr. Goof Buijs, is the manager of UNESCO Chair / WHO Collaborating Centre Global Health & Education. From 2019 he is director of Global Health & Education Consultancy. His field of expertise is bringing health and education together. He is an experienced networker, expert in creating and leading international projects focused on prevention and youth, innovator, trainer and facilitator of events and conferences. He supports cooperation among people, focusing on everyone’s talents and uniqueness.

Summary

Education has the power to transform the lives of children and young people. Those who receive a good quality education are more likely to be healthy, and likewise those who are healthy are better able to learn and complete their education. Health and well-being education aims to equip children and young people with knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that empower them to realize their health, well-being and dignity; develop respectful relationships; consider how their choices affect their own well-being and that of others; and understand and ensure the protection of their rights and health throughout their lives.

Today, more young people than ever before are turning to digital spaces for information on health and relationships. During the webinar, educators, health promoters, school health workers and other interested actors will learn about the potential of digital tools to complement the delivery of school-based education for health and well-being with a particular focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights. They will also learn about digital solutions for teacher preparation.

Speakers from the UNESCO Chair Global Health & Education, UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa and UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education will address the following questions:

  1. Why does health and well-being education matter and why should it be part of school curriculum?
  2. Why can and should digital tools be considered for school-based health education?
  3. What kind of digital solutions are there to support teachers and how can they be used?
  4. What are the practical considerations of using digital tools in the classroom?

Resources